


My Therapist Thinks I Love You

by aliteraryaddict



Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - College/University, Developing Friendships, Everything is Beautiful and Everything Hurts, Healing, Healthy Relationships, I'm Sorry, Loss of Virginity, M/M, Mental Health Issues, Slow Build, Slow Burn, Substance Abuse, Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms, Unhealthy Relationships
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-11-02
Updated: 2018-05-31
Packaged: 2019-01-28 08:10:46
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con, Underage
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,100
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12602164
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aliteraryaddict/pseuds/aliteraryaddict
Summary: "Ah, Mr. Valdez, what brings you in today?""I've been told I have self-destructive tendencies."





	1. Letter to the Readers

**Author's Note:**

> I do not own any of the characters, all Percy Jackson and Heroes Of Olympus characters belong to Rick Riordan.

Dear Reader,

 

I would like to forewarn anyone who is thinking of reading this that it has some pretty mature issues covered. There will be some topics that may be triggering to you, and I will be sure to put specific warnings before chapters.

Parts of this story are based on my own experiences; some parts are fabricated for the plot. The characters may be out of character, especially as this is a College AU. I have written some of the characters in scenes that would not fit the canon characterization but do fill the roles in this story based off of people I know who remind me of the characters.

A few of such triggering and out of character actions in this story include but are not limited to: underage drinking, smoking, substance abuse, dissociative breaks, dubious consent, closeted bisexuality, unsafe situations, and family issues. If you are dealing with any of the issues I write about, feel free to reach out and talk to the proper people. If you need anyone to talk to, feel free to contact me through my Tumblr melancholic-trash. However, I may not be able to respond in the way you need.

Unlike my other story, Leo the Love Mechanic, this story will be rated M and will have explicit scenes. I have altered some of the relationships in the canon-verse to fit my idea for this story, and they are not the same as those from LtLM. It will not be as fluffy, although the friendships in this story will be just as important and well built. That being said, there will be good, healthy relationships being built along with toxic ones. There _is_ good in this story. I just need to say it won’t be okay- _okay_ the whole way through because the first few chapters start off a little slow and may be misleading.

I’m not pussyfooting it time, this is a Valgrace and a PerLeo fanfiction. There may be other side relationships, but one of these relationships are endgame. I’m starting most of, if not all, the characters off on a blank slate, and the first few chapters set up the rest of the story, so please be patient as I want to do this right. More characters may be added as I go along, and there will be side pairings that I won't tag in the relationship tag. I may have to add more to the warning tags though. Hmm.

I’m not sure when I’ll start updating, but I want to have a schedule for this story unlike the irregular updating system of LtLM. I’m thinking once a month or once every other month? Feel free to tell me how often you’d like to see updates. Once I pick a schedule I’ll stick to it. I’ve noticed the ‘please update soon’ comments kill my motivation and maybe this will keep them to a minimum, so I can keep wanting to write?

This was basically a long Author’s note, but it was necessary to let you know what was coming. I may also be looking for one or two people to bounce ideas off of, so feel free to contact me if you're interested!

 

Yours,

Lex


	2. Chapter One: Summer in the City

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hot town, summer in the city  
> Back of my neck getting dirty and gritty  
> Been down, isn't it a pity  
> \- "Summer in the City" by The Lovin' Spoonful

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I do not own any of the characters, all Percy Jackson and Heroes Of Olympus characters belong to Rick Riordan.

“Ah, Mr. Valdez, what brings you in today?”

 

“I’ve been told I have self-destructive tendencies. Therapy was suggested.”  Leo shrugs nonchalantly. He leans forward, hands twirling pencils and pens around the ceramic mug on the edge of Chiron’s desk.

 

“Yes, well, I’m your Psychology professor, not a therapist. I do, however, hold a genuine interest in all my students’ lives and their wellbeing, so I will do my best to use my knowledge to help you with whatever problems you have.” Chiron maneuvers around Leo, wheeling himself to his desk. He gingerly moves the mug and replaces it with a foam ball. “Here, this produces less noise and is actually meant to alleviate stress.”

 

“Oh, um, thanks.” Leo picks up the yellow stress ball and moves his hands into his lap, thumbs digging into it. Chiron smiles tenderly as he watches the young Latino squirming across from him. Leo Valdez was a bright student in his introduction to Psychology class, a Freshman Engineering major he had a bit of a soft spot for. He had met the boy at the camp he ran the summer when he was just a Sophomore in high school.

 

The camp was funded and run by a local organization that helped students with learning disabilities and Leo had been invited to participate due to an extreme case of ADHD and dyslexia. Leo had been put into Coach Hedge’s group with another out-of-stater, Piper McLean, who also struggled with ADHD and dyslexia. While Chiron hadn’t personally been put in charge of the pair he got to know the two of them quickly and knew they both had bright futures ahead of them.

 

“So, Mr. Valdez, would you like to discuss why you were suggested therapy or why you chose to come see me instead of a licensed therapist?” Leo fidgeted, putting the foam ball back on the desk before looking away from the professor.

 

“Piper said I was all kinds of fucked up and thinks I need to talk to somebody about it. And, like, I really did try to talk to one of the therapists the school suggests, but it didn’t make me feel any better. You’re just, like, really wise and I felt like you would be able to dish out some Gandalf-level advice.” He began picking at the hem of his graphic tee, unable to calm the nerves buzzing under his skin.

 

“Why would Miss McLean suggest you were, as you phrased it, ‘all kinds of fucked up’?” Chiron was rolled his thumbs into the mahogany wood of the desk, carefully watching his student. Leo bit his lower lip, clearly struggling to figure out what to say. “This is a safe space, Mr. Valdez, feel free to speak your mind.”

 

“If I say anything in here you won’t use it against me, right? Or, like, tell anyone else about it? I mean, I know you wouldn’t, or else I wouldn’t be here, but, like, I just am not sure how this whole thing works and I’m really nervous.”

 

“I will apply patient-doctor confidentiality privileges to anything you come to talk to me about privately, Mr. Valdez.”

 

“Could you call me Leo? I’m sorry, Mr. Valdez is just, it is kinda throwing me off.” The young man relaxes, melting into the seat and laughing awkwardly.

 

“Of course,” Chiron agrees. Leo flashes him a slanted grin, all toothy on one side in a way that causes his cheek to dimple in. “So, Leo, I believe you agree with Miss McLean to some extent since you decided to follow her advice, correct.” Leo fidgets, pulling his legs towards his chest.

 

“Isn’t there, like, some special chair I should sit in?”

 

“I suppose most certified therapist offices are shown to have one, yes, but sadly my office does not,” the professor answers. Neither spoke for a few moments, the soft humming of the professor’s desktop the only sound filling the small office.

 

“Right, well,” Leo starts. His fingers tug loosely at the yarn bracelet tied around his wrists, eyes scanning the décor of the office as he tries to figure out where to start. “Pipes is right, like, even more right than I want to admit. I’m kinda a mess right now. I haven’t had the best semester, I guess. And, like, I’m doing things I never thought I would and there’s just _so_ much shit, I’m not really sure where I need to begin.”

 

“How about you start from the start of this semester?” Chiron suggests. He reclines in his wheelchair, patient and kind with the teen.

 

“It would be easier if I started with this summer.”

 

* * *

 

**_The way you nibble on my ear, the only words I wanna hear. Baby take it slow so we can last_ _long._ **

 

Hands move up the leg of his Chubbies swim trunks, both boys focused solely on one another. The music drowned out all background noise, the bass reverberated in his chest. The trickling of the pool’s waterfall barely audible even though they were right beside it. Leo isn’t sure if the heat is from the jacuzzi, the sweltering Houston weather, or the other boy’s touch, but he feels like he is burning up from the inside out.

 

“Lester,” Leo groans. Chapped lips brush over sun-bronzed skin, his hands moving in practiced strokes.

 

“Apollo,” he corrects. Leo grunts, teeth grazing over the other’s shoulder.

 

He remembered when Apollo was just Lester Papadopoulos, a zit-faced senior in his trigonometry class who made his heart flutter with a simple smile. College had changed the older boy, flab melted away into toned muscles. Curly brown hair had grown past his chin, had straightened out and lightened up to a golden blond as his pale skin darkened into a bronze tan. He had taken on the nickname given to him by his roommates, Apollo, and dropped Lester.

 

Lester, Apollo, what did it matter. Leo didn’t care what he wanted to be called or how he looked. If he was being honest, Apollo had gotten a lot better at fucking since he had left for college. Leo never questioned how. He wasn’t sure he really cared, not when his stomach twisted itself into knots and his toes curled.

 

The hand that had been moving up his thigh pulled out from under his swim trunks to dip below his waistband. Where Lester had been slow and awkward Apollo was smooth and methodical, practiced and patient. Leo expected the digit that slid into him, knew it was coming, but still, he hissed at the intrusion.

 

“Not in the pool,” Leo said. He squirmed as the finger curled inside and another was hastily added.

 

“It’s a good thing we’re in the hot tub.” A wicked grin graced Apollo’s face and Leo was glad that music was blaring so loudly the neighbors wouldn’t hear them, thanking whatever deity had Ms. Papadopulo out of town.

 

 

 

 

“I’m home ma,” Leo called out as he entered the house through the garage. He dropped his keys in the dish by the door and grinned at his mother when she turned away from the stove to face him. The smoke coming off of the pan smelled like peppers and spices and he knew fajitas would be served for lunch.

 

“Welcome home, mijo. How was the Papadopoulo’s?”

 

“Ah, it was good. Lester and I just kinda lazed around all weekend in the pool,” he answered easily. He pressed a quick kiss to his mom’s forehead before reaching into the skillet and taking out a sizzling piece of chicken. “Leto sends her love.”

 

“I can tell, your shoulders are sunburnt. It was so sweet of her to let you spend the weekend with them.” Her cool hands felt nice against his skin and he relaxed into her gentle touch. “Go upstairs and put some aloe on that. Oh, and tell Harley that lunch will be ready in a few minutes!”

 

“Yeah, sure thing ma,” Leo replied. He tried to ignore the school pictures of him and his younger brother that decorated the walls in mismatching frames. Art from their preschool days were also hung up alongside any medals or ribbons they had won in the various sports and competitions they had taken part in. The carpet of the stairs had worn down in the middle and rubbed against the bottom of his feet as he made his way up the stairs.

 

Leo wasn’t sure what he had been expecting when he opened his bathroom door. Maybe some dirty underwear was thrown haphazardly around the small room, a couple cups from Chic-fil-a and the gas station near his house, the typical teenage mess he had left behind before he left for the weekend. He had just wanted to get the Hawaiian Tropic lotion and lather it over his shoulders until the fuzzy warmth that accompanied the pain of the sunburn dissipated. Instead, he got to have the image of his nine-year-old brother butt-ass naked on his toilet with Leo’s Nintendo resting on his leg. The Mario theme did nothing to conceal the almost silent plop.

 

“What the hell, Harles.” Leo rakes his fingers through his curls. “You have your own bathroom to shit in, why are you in mine?” He reaches into the cabinet under his sink doing his best not to look at his brother. Another plop fills the brief silence between them.

 

“Yeah, but yours has a window. That means it has a view.” Harley gives his brother a toothy smile, closing the pink DS and setting it on the back of the commode.

 

“What do you mean ‘a view’, it overlooks the road behind our house and the neighbors' backyard.” Leo snorts. He really needs to clean out his bathroom, the cabinet is filled with bags from various fast food chains and a pair of molded swim trunks that he can’t help but gag at.

 

“You’re out of toilet paper,” Harley says. Leo glances over and sees the cardboard spools he had left arranged in a way that had reminded him of someone flipping the bird. It seemed to say, ‘fuck you, Leo, refill me you piece of shit’. He groaned and passed his brother his spare roll and grabs the green bottle of Hawaiian Tropical.

 

“Mom said lunch’ll be ready in a few.” He pops open the bottle and starts to slather the clear lotion over his chest and shoulders. He has trouble reaching parts of his back, but he’s determined to get them. He wonders if he can get away with wearing no shirt at the table, his mother might understand and let him get away with breaking that family rule.

 

“What’re we having?”

 

“Looks like fajitas.”

 

“She’s really going all out ‘cause you leaving in a week. During the school year she didn’t even want to make PB and Js for lunch.” Leo hears a flush and Harley nudges him to the side to wash his hands. “Here, I’ll get your shoulders. You’re making that constipated face and you can’t reach all the way.”

 

“Thanks.” Harley took the tube while his brother crouched over. He flinched when unexpected, cool hands met with his shoulders, his skin sensitive from the burn. 

 

“Do you have to go away to Massachusetts for college? I’m gonna miss you.” It hurts. Leo knows it isn’t meant to, but it does. He feels like a belt is tightening around his throat and it gets hard to breathe. His eyes sting and he handles this very pivotal moment in their sibling relationship the best way he knows how. He quotes the Terminator.

 

“I’ll be back.”

 

 

 

 

Leo’s summer was pretty mundane. He falls into a routine, working forty-hour weeks at the Subway fifteen minutes away from his house, every other weekend seems to be spent with Apollo, occasionally meet-ups with some of his friends for lunch. Not much really happens, he basically peaced out on most people he knew after graduation, talking to only a handful of kids he spent a majority of his last four years with.

 

He spent part of the Fourth of July with the Stolls, lighting up illegal fireworks in the neighborhood and shoving sparklers into each other’s faces. When they ran out of sparklers Connor chased Leo around with a can of hairspray, Travis worked the lighter. Whenever he was within four feet of them they blasted a stream of fire his way, the little shits. The other half he spends on the couch with his parents watching The Hitman’s Bodyguard. Harley was away, spending the night at a friend’s house, so the three of them sprawled out with only the sound from the movie and the cracks of the fireworks filling the silence between them.

 

Leo’s father, Hephaestus, was off work for the first time in two weeks. He had decided to close the auto repair shop he owned for the day, letting all his employees spend the day with their families. It was strange, having his father around. Sure, Leo knew his father loved him and cared, he was just better with wires than people.

 

For a majority of Leo’s childhood Hephaestus spent his time in his shop working on cars and avoiding human interaction as much as possible. His mother took care of that as that aspect of the business and the family. She managed most of the interactions with the customers, she just had the kind of personality that allowed her to work well with others. She also served as the translator between Hephaestus and the kids.

 

The next big summer shebang was July seventh, Leo’s eighteenth birthday. Most years his mother put together a party at the local community pool, then there’d be a movie night after where cake and ice cream were served to all the hungry teenagers. Usually the Stoll brothers and Lester/Apollo would stay the night and they’d all pile into Leo’s bed and binge shows on Netflix.

 

This year was different. The Papadopoulos were out of town and most of his friends were dispersed around the world, their parents taking them on extravagant trips for graduation before their freshman year of college, so it was just Connor, Travis, and Leo lazing around his house. A YouTube Vine compilation was playing on the television in the living room. His parents were both at work so they had the house to themselves.

 

“Have you ever considered homosexuality?”

 

“Where the hell did that come from Trav?” Leo asked. He didn’t mention that yes, he had “tried homosexuality”. Connor glanced over at him from his place on the recliner, eyes narrowing slightly.

 

“I mean, it’d make sense. You’ve never had a girlfriend, so maybe you’re gay.” Connor chimed in. Leo squirmed, the only reason he hadn’t had a girlfriend because he’d been too busy in high school with Lester. Maybe he was gay.

 

“Maybe he’s bi.” Harley shouted from Leo’s bathroom.

 

“Maybe y’all should shut the fuck up about my sexuality or my lack of love life and focus on your own. You’re gonna be a senior and you haven’t had a girlfriend yet either Trav.” Leo grumbled. He pressed further into the couch, wishing it would swallow him.

 

“Yeah, but I’ve been kissed. You’ve done nothing. You’re about to go to college with no, you know, experience.”

 

“I have tons of experience,” Leo defends lamely. He grabs one of the decorative throw pillows his mother keeps on the couch and attempts to smother himself with it. At least the cold embrace of death would put him out of this misery.

 

“With that pillow and his right hand,” Connor says. The Stoll brothers snicker. Leo wishes death would be a little quicker with that whole cold embrace thing.

 

 

 

 

Summer seems to fly by faster after his birthday. July quickly bled into August and Leo has packed up three suitcases for his imminent move to his Massachusetts dorm. They took up the corner of his room by the window and at night they cast looming shadows over his bed. Neither brother speaks about it when they sit across from each other at the round oak table in the mornings. They filled the silence by shoveling various sugary cereals into their mouths. His father starts to take more hours on at the shop and his mother always seems to be seeing memories rather than him when she looks at him.

 

“So, a few more days ‘til you fly away to Massachusetts,” Apollo says. They’re lying in the blond’s bed; his window is cracked open to air out the smell of sex in the room but instead just allows moisture into the room. Their legs are tangled together with the covers, both boys naked and covered in a sheen of sweat. His thumb rubs circles into Leo’s bicep, his lips brushing against the smaller teen’s shoulders when he speaks.

 

“Yeah, my dad and I leave at like six in the morning on Friday to catch our flight.”

 

“Can’t believe I’m fucking a Cambridge boy.” He chuckles and warm breath fans over Leo’s neck. The young Latino squirms away, putting as much distance as he could between their bodies. It’s too hot to be pressed against one another. “Are you going to be home for Thanksgiving.”

 

“Maybe.” Leo shrugs. He’s not sure, all he knows is that airfare is pretty expensive, and his family isn’t exactly rolling in cash the way the Papadopoulos are. He just knows his mother will make sure he’s home for the important holidays, the big ones where the dorms shut down. He’s not sure what that means about the other ones, he doesn’t ask.

 

“Are you going to have time to see me when you’re back?” The blond asks. Leo squeezes his eyes shut. He wants to say yes, he likes the time he spends with the older boy. The Latino just isn’t sure what will happen in the time in between now and their next meeting. He won’t be the one stuck in their hometown waiting around for the other to come back to him anymore. Leo doesn’t know what that means for their relationship, whatever it was. For the first time, it is his choice, not Lester’s, about what they do from here forward.

 

Leo resists the urge to flinch when he feels knuckles brush against his spine.

 

 

 

 

“Remember to call when you get to the airport. And when you get through security. Oh, and when you land!” Esperanza Valdez looked crazy, standing out in the driveway before the sun had even risen in her hair curlers and a fuzzy pink robe wrapped around her. Harley was standing by her side, rubbing his eyes and pulling on his Iron Man pajamas. Hephaestus was loading the family truck up with Leo’s suitcases. It was kind of serene, his family saying goodbye while the rest of the cul-de-sac sleeps.

 

“Got it Ma, no need to worry.” Leo shoved his phone into his back pocket before giving his mom a tight hug. Harley and he made eye contact and held it for an awkward few moments before his younger brother threw his arm’s around Leo’s waist. The teen carded his fingers through the boy’s hair, humming softly. He’d miss the little imp more than he was willing to admit. Harley was one of his best friends, they talked about things he didn’t discuss with anyone else. Religion, sexuality, political views. Sensitive topics his parents already had set opinions on. “Love you Harles.”

 

“Don’t go,” Harley whispered into the front of his shirt. “Please, don’t go.”

 

“You’ll be okay little man, I’ll be back before you even know it. Thanksgiving is only a few months away. You’ll be busy when you start school and won’t even notice I’m gone. Trust me, give it a few weeks and you’ll never want me back.” He pressed a quick kiss to Harley’s forehead before stepping back and giving his mother a quick hug. “Love you, Mama.”

 

“Stop,” his mother warns. “I’m not going to cry. No, I refuse to.” She sniffles and turns her head, but Leo catches the tears in her eyes. “Oh, mijo. My baby boy, leaving me to make a name for himself. Going all the way by himself to Massachusetts. When did you get all grown up?” She grabs his face and peppers it with kisses before he can get away.

 

“Ma,” Leo whines. She sighs and lets go of his face, backing away and dabbing her eyes with the sleeves of her robe.

 

“Don’t worry, Esperanza. We’ll call you later, but we need to go now if we want to beat the morning rush into town. I ten is going to get busy and we need to be at the airport-”

 

“Two hours in advance. Yes, I know sweetheart. Just, be safe and take care of our baby, okay.”

 

“We will be. Everything will be okay, Leo will be fine.” Hephaestus tugs lightly on his eldest son’s arm, maneuvering him towards the car. Leo watches the missing half of his family shrink in the car’s review mirror. He looked out the window as some dated eighties song playing over the radio filled the silence between him and his father.

 

 

 

 

“Yes, Esperanza, we landed safely. We just got our baggage and are at the Enterprise rental place trying to pick out a car. Yes, we will call you when we get to the hotel. The Holiday Inn is about twenty minutes away but we’re probably going to stop somewhere for dinner. Yes, I’ll tell him. I love you too.” Leo’s father stood a few feet away from him, not paying attention to what his son was doing. Not that the young Latino cared, he was too busy looking at all the cars.

 

He grew up in his parents’ shop around cars like 1956 Chevrolet Bel Airs and 1957 BMW 507s so, of course, he was obsessed with the mechanical beauties. He had memorized the make and models of every car made since the fifties when he was in third grade and by the time he was eleven he knew how to restore an engine and change spark plugs. Here, in the parking garage, he was surrounded by middle-aged soccer mom vans with his eyes set on a red 2016 Jeep Cherokee. It was better than the 2015 Dodge Durango parked next to it.

 

“Leo, your mom says she loves you.” He turns to watch his father lugging their suitcases behind him while trying to simultaneously shove his phone into his pocket. When he sees where Leo is looking he snorts in an awkward and strangled kind of way. “I should have known since your thing with Jeeps. Well, alright. That the one you want?”

 

Leo looks at his dad and nods like he can’t believe he gets a say in the matter. “Yeah. I mean, yes, please!” He answers. His cheeks hurt he’s grinning so wide, and Hephaestus steps back like he’s unsure what to do when interacting with the tiny human he helped create. Leo’s sure he probably doesn’t have a clue, but at this moment, it didn’t matter.

 

His father gets the keys from the rental kiosk and they load up the car together. Leo feels like he’s about to explode from all the unused energy he has stored up through the day of travel, so he busies himself with changing the radio station and playing around with the AC settings of the car. His father is too busy trying to follow Siri’s GPS directions via the Maps app to really pay much attention to what his son is doing. When he can’t do much else with the car’s control panels he drums his fingers on the dashboard, eyes struggling to catch every detail of everything they drive by.

 

“You hungry?” It’s sudden, unexpected. His father never really talks to him when he drives, he probably isn’t really sure what to say. He never attended any of Leo’s tennis games when he was a kid, didn’t try to actively involve himself in his son’s life.

 

“Yeah, I Googled places near Cambridge to eat and a lot of people left good reviews on this restaurant called Life Alive.” He resists the urge to fidget under his father’s watchful eye, relaxing when the older man nods and turns his attention back on the road.

 

“Okay, we’ll get checked into our room and drop our stuff off and grab a bite to eat.”

 

They go back to not talking.

 

 

 

 

Leo can’t sleep. His father is snoring in the bed next to his, but that’s not it. The reality of the situation is setting in. Tomorrow he moves into a dorm thousands of miles away from his parents, not really knowing anybody on campus, unable to change his mind and go back home. His brain seems to be firing nonstop and he can’t manage to keep his eyes shut for more than a few minutes. He’s not sure if he’s excited or terrified. He’s always lived in the moment; never really thought about the consequences he would have to deal with in the future. He already missed his mother and Harley.

 

Dinner with his father went about as well as he had expected. Peaceful. Quiet. Obligatory conversation was carried out briefly, asking how the other felt before falling back into the usual silence. It felt like his father wanted to say more, wanted to have a deeper moment with his son, but he just couldn’t find the words to say. He wondered if Hephaestus would even say goodbye after helping him move in tomorrow. He wouldn’t be surprised if he didn’t, his father couldn’t handle his emotions very well. Leo knew that, respected that, and loved him regardless.

 

Leo knew that when his dad left he would be alone.

 

Last time he emailed Piper she had been considering MIT, but her parents had wanted her to stay close to home and go to the University of Arizona. Leo knew she had also gotten her acceptance letter to UCLA, a school closer to her father. He selfishly hoped she chose Massachusetts because at least then he wouldn’t be walking into this with no friends. He’d felt like he’d known her his whole life after just three weeks of his summer two years ago and they’d only grown closer since then. The whole finals-graduation-senior-trip thing just had them a bit disconnected for the last four months, but he knew if she was on campus that time would have done nothing to their relationship.

 

But if she wasn’t then Leo really wouldn’t have anybody. He knew he’d make friends after some time, he’d had plenty in high school, but this wasn’t high school anymore. This was college, and Leo wasn’t the well-known class clown or the school’s top tennis player anymore, he was a nobody.

 

He was starting to realize he may be just a little bit terrified. He could handle that. Maybe. He remembered all of the pointless hours he’d spent on YouTube watching other people talk about their college freshman experience, think about how everything turned out A-Okay for those self-obsessed vloggers.  He’d probably make even more friends and good memories than they did because he won’t spend the year with his face in his phone worrying over his social media or a camera blocking out the world around him. He’d be fine.

 

Most likely. Probably.

 

_Shit, how was he going to survive this?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> not beta'd  
> anyways, i originally had this chapter at around 15,000 words but i decided to cut some scenes down/out and moved the moving in into the next chapter which is still being worked on (it will also probably be close to 4,500-5,000 words). i plan on updating this story monthly, which may seem slow, but allows me to update pretty consistently. any additional chapters updated in the month will be a bonus, its just so update at least once a month.  
> that being said, i'm excited for people to read this story. i have scenes for future chapters written out and an outline so i know where this story is going. it's pretty slow burn and it's more about Leo than it is about the relationships for a majority of that story, so if you're not into that than it's cool if you don't want to read any further.  
> that being said, i added perleo into this fic alongside valgrace because i read "I'm Yours" and "Here in Your Arms" by kingburu and accidentally fell in love despite stanning percabeth and valgrace. i will do my best to make sure to do every couple justice and promise there will be no character bashing.  
> also, suprise, throwing some apolleo you're way because i cant control myself. congratulations, you've been blessed.
> 
> onto personal things for anyone who reads my endnotes and who has read this far  
> so i know i took forever updating this and i haven't been active on LTLM. i've been pretty busy this past semester, spring semester of my freshman year of college was far busier than the fall. i was taking twenty credit hours, couldn't seem to stay healthy for longer than a week, and finals came a lot faster than i expected. one of the classes i took was a creative writing course and i had to write two twenty-page pieces for a final portfolio and the teacher told me that she was not a fan of my style and would be surprised if anybody actually ever enjoyed what i wrote so it was hard to feel comfortable with anything i've written since then.  
> since it is summer i have a lot more free time, but i'm also working forty-hour weeks to save up money so i can continue to go to college. i'm pretty crazy busy and i've felt pretty bad about taking so long to actually produce content.


End file.
